JP2004180323A - Method and system for breaking audio-visual component - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and system for break up and connection of A/V components, and communications of A/V content stream information. <P>SOLUTION: An A/V stream from a source device is packaged to be transmitted to one or two or more output devices via an IP network. A legacy A/V system may be integrated into an A/V system that is supported on the network by a brick device. The brick device operates to provide conversion of an analog signal and an IP protocol together with synchronizing of an A/V stream data packets received therewith. Rendering and reproducing of the A/V stream are synchronized on a large number of output devices to eliminate distortions and the specific performance of the other networks, so that the user may have pleasant experience. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

  The present invention relates to audio / visual. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for connecting, distributing and exploring audio / visual content streams.

  Audio / visual (A / V) content in today's homes requires excessive hardware and software components from various manufacturers. These components have not fully exploited the various advances in interoperability, device connectivity and communication that exist today. A typical A / V system setup consists of a number of devices hardwired together, sometimes via a tuner / source switcher. As a result, most of the functionality of such a system is typically provided in a single room or limited area of a house. For example, in a typical home with moderately usable A / V components, a children's room may have a compact disc (CD) player, speakers and a television (TV), but the TV is probably Not connected to external speakers. However, in the living room, the TV, digital video disc (DVD), VCR, speakers and stereo system are all connected to each other.

  It may be possible to interconnect the components of a children's room in a single way or in conjunction with a living room, but most people complain of their complexity and go from component to component, i.e. On the contrary, you'll have a hard time running the wires around the speakers in the room.

  A general example of an A / V system and connection at home is described with respect to FIG. As shown, a typical home system includes a satellite receiver cable box 102, a PC 104 with a digital music player, a VCR 106, a CD / DVD player 108, a tuner or source switcher 110, a TV 112, a sound processor 114, an amplifier. 116, and a left channel speaker 118 and a right channel speaker 120.

  The satellite broadcast receiver 102, PC 104, VCR 106, CD / DVD 108 and TV 112 (collectively referred to as source devices) are all connected to a tuner / source switcher 110. Generally, each source device is individually connected to the tuner source switcher 110 via a pair of audio cables. With each pair of audio cables, signals are provided to the left and right channels of the system. Alternatively, a digital point-to-point interconnect such as an SPDIF (Sony / Phillips Digital Interface Format), which is an isochronous interconnect, may be used. Such signals are then ultimately directed to the appropriate of the left and right channel speakers 118,120. The sound processor 114 can be incorporated into the tuner 110, and in some cases can be included in a separate device. In either case, sound processor 114 further provides processing of the source signal to produce stereo, surround sound, and other such sound effects. Amplifier 116 may also be incorporated in the same unit as tuner 110 and sound processor 114. Amplifier 116 provides amplification of the signal to both left channel speaker 118 and right channel speaker 120.

  Generally speaking, the functions described so far can only be performed if the individual components are properly connected to each other. Problems tend to arise because users face numerous connectors and multiple wires that must be properly connected. Further increasing the user's dilemma requires the need to deliver or extend audio / visual information to multiple rooms in a house. Conventional stereo systems do not accommodate distributed control or extensive wiring of loudspeakers or other components over long distances. In this regard, there have been no major advances with A / V systems that take advantage of any of the recent technological revolutions in data communications. Attempts to address the problem of electronic A / V communication are generally hampered by limitations, which include the current hard wired mode of operation, and the physical Due to components. For example, when trying to place the output component a long distance from the source component, the quality of the A / V playback decreases. These are due to the loss of signals in the physical wiring used and due to the lack of a simple way to control a large number of connected devices.

  Some of the connectivity problems associated with the widespread wiring described above must be taken or solved in a dedicated manner for wirelessly communicating between the components or as a medium for communicating between A / V components. Have included non-standard schemes that attempt to utilize home AC wiring. These attempts have not met their goals in many ways. Some of these drawbacks include poor sound quality due to factors such as noise or interference from other devices. Another disadvantage is related to the cost of the non-standard hardware approach. The cost of incorporating sufficiently sophisticated transmitters and receivers into a home A / V system at a reasonable cost to enable A / V distribution over such media has become quite high. I have.

  The need to break the tight link between A / V devices and output devices requires a communication paradigm that provides a low cost, transparent and intelligent link between such devices.

  In view of the above, there is a need to provide systems and methods that allow for disaggregation of A / V components. More importantly, such decomposition is based on a methodology that is independent of the location of any relevant components and any underlying communication protocols. Further, there is a need for systems and methods that also provide a flexible system and a satisfactory user experience for the installation and use of such A / V components. Further, there is a need for a system that addresses the limitations of A / V component location and physical proximity.

  The present invention is directed to a method and system for connecting A / V components and communicating A / V content stream information.

  In one aspect, the invention is directed to an A / V stream from a source device implemented for transmission over a network to one or more output devices.

  In another aspect, the invention is directed to the use of an IP network protocol.

  In yet another aspect, the present invention is directed to a device that enables integration of a legacy A / V system into a network supporting the A / V system.

  In yet another aspect, the invention is directed to synchronizing the rendering and playback of A / V stream information on multiple output devices.

  In yet another aspect, the present invention is directed to a system and method for establishing tight time synchronization between networked A / V devices.

  The present invention provides for an A / V stream from a source device implemented for transmission over an IP network to one or more output devices. Brick devices enable integration of legacy A / V systems into networks supporting A / V systems. The brick device operates to provide analog signals and IP protocol conversion, and operates with synchronization of received A / V stream data packets. Synchronize the rendering and playback of A / V stream content on multiple output devices to overcome distortions and other network idiosyncrasies, and to promote a satisfactory user experience.

  Additional aspects of the invention, along with the advantages and novel features associated therewith, are set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a review of the following, or You can learn from implementation. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instruments and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The present invention is directed to systems and methods for disassembling A / V components and enabling remote placement of such components throughout a particular location or in a geographically dispersed area. . The present invention provides communication between a source and a destination A / V component by using a network communication protocol that is not affected by the actual medium between the components.

  In one embodiment, the various A / V components are connected via various Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as IEEE 802.11, 10Base-T and HPNA. An exemplary network 200 illustrating various connections is shown in FIG. With such an IP network, decomposed A / V stream delivery can be provided, but other issues inherent to the IP network introduce synchronization problems in content delivery. Such synchronization problems, as well as transmission delay problems, are addressed by the present invention. The present invention further provides for the integration and use of legacy A / V components in IP stream distribution systems through the use of "Bricks". As used herein, a "brick" is essentially a group of hardware and software components that allow the hardware and software components to connect an IP network to A / V components or conventional analog circuits of a system. Interaction is provided. A more detailed description of bricks will be provided later with reference to FIG. For purposes of illustration, reference is made to various types of bricks, merely to assist in the description of the figures and to indicate possible differences in components. However, regardless of the type discussed, bricks are conceptually half IP and half A / V media.

  Returning to FIG. 2, an exemplary network 200 is shown. In network 200, a number of A / V components are interconnected. More specifically, the digital video disc (DVD) player 202, tuner 204, compact disc (CD) player 206, and personal computer (PC) 208 are each considered source devices and transmitted to the IP communication cloud 220 via various interfaces. Connecting. Receiving devices such as speakers (left channel speaker 232 and right channel speaker 236) and display 240 are also connected to communication cloud 220. The present invention is not limited to the particular source or receiving device shown in FIG. Further, a time master device 228 facilitates network synchronization and is connected to the communication cloud 220. The illustrated access point device 218 provides an interface for any one of a number of wireless network devices. As suggested above, network 200 may include a wide area network (WAN) and the Internet. Block 226 is shown to illustrate connection to the Internet communication cloud 220. Communication cloud 220 may further include a number of interconnected components, such as DSL modem 224, 10/100 switch 222, routers and other such communication connection devices.

  As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, each of the A / V devices and components described above requires an interface that can connect to the network cloud 220. For purposes of illustration and not limitation, some components are shown and described as having a particular type of IP network connection. It should be understood that the type of IP interface or connection is transparent to the systems and methods of the present invention. Furthermore, although the interface to the communication cloud 220 is shown as a separate component, the present invention also expects that some or all of those components can be integrated directly into an A / V device. When integrated into an A / V device, a separate brick interface is no longer needed. However, bricks must be provided to accommodate legacy A / V sources and receiving devices.

  In this example, the DVD player 202 is shown to be connected via the first type brick 210. The first type brick 210 includes an MPEG converter and processes the video portion of information from the DVD player 202. An analog-to-digital converter (ADC) for processing the analog portion of the signal from the DVD player 202 is also shown within the first type brick 210. Another component of the first type brick 210 is a network interface. Network connectivity can be provided through a specific network interface card (NIC) or other integrated circuit. In the case of the illustrated DVD player 202, the 802.11 NIC is utilized to provide wireless connectivity to the communication cloud 220. Wireless connectivity is completed via the 802.11 access point 218. Thus, the flow of A / V content from source DVD player 202 onto IP network 200 for rendering on any of a number of IP compatible A / V receiving devices by first type brick 210. Is possible.

  In a manner somewhat similar to DVD player 202, tuner / amplifier 204 is also connected to communication cloud 220 of IP network 200. The tuner / amplifier 204 is connected via a second type brick 212. The second type brick 212 includes an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and processes the analog audio portion of the signal from the tuner / amplifier 204. The second type brick 212 also includes a network interface for placing source information on the IP network 200. Again, connectivity is provided by the 802.11 NIC.

  The CD player 206 also connects to the communication cloud 220. The CD player 206 is connected via the third type brick 214. The third type brick 214 includes an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and processes the analog part of the signal from the CD player 206. The third type brick 214 provides network connectivity through a 10Base-TNIC, and the 10Base-TNIC is wired directly to the 10/100 switch 222 of the communication cloud 220.

  As shown, the PC 208 may also connect to the communication cloud 220 via any one of a number of suitable network interface cards 216. In this case, the NIC 216 is incorporated in the PC 208 and wired to the 10/100 switch 222.

  All signals from any of the source A / V devices 202-208 are ultimately consumed by one or more receiving devices. The receiving device renders or provides a signal for the end user's listening / viewing enjoyment. Exemplary receiving devices for some A / V streams are illustrated as speakers 232, 236 and display 240. The left channel speaker 232 is connected to the communication cloud 220 via the fourth type brick 230 and receives information from the communication cloud 220. The right channel speaker 236 is also connected to the communication cloud 220 via the fourth type brick 234 and receives information from the communication cloud 220. The fourth type bricks 230, 234 include a network interface, such as a 10Base-TNIC and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). In short, the fourth type bricks 230, 234 can receive the IP stream information and convert it into an analog signal, which can be rendered by the speakers 232, 236. The video display 240 may represent a graphic image, which is received from the communication cloud 220 via the fifth brick 238. The fifth type brick 238 includes an NIC and an MPEG decoder for decompressing a video signal.

  It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the description of each brick described above has been greatly simplified for clarity. A more detailed description of bricks, especially type 5 bricks, is provided with reference to FIG. It will also be appreciated that other brick types are within the scope of the invention, each including similar and suitable components suitable for the particular A / V device to which the brick is connected.

  In FIG. 3, a fifth type brick is shown and is generally referred to as brick 300. Brick 300 can be a stand-alone component and is intended primarily as a transitional device, thereby allowing users to enjoy the benefits of the present invention while further minimizing investment. . In other words, brick 300 allows a user to connect a standard A / V device to IP network 200. This is achieved by providing physically and logically bridging connections that allow users to utilize existing A / V systems in the IP distribution network. In another embodiment of the present invention, the functions of brick 300 or its components are incorporated and integrated into separate A / V components. This eliminates the need for a separate brick 300 component. In either case, brick 300 includes half the IP network dependent and half the A / V media. Half of the A / V media will vary depending on whether the brick is intended as a source or receiving device. Examples of source devices include tuners, microphones and DVD players, while receiving devices include speakers and displays.

  Generally, brick 300 includes network communication components: a network interface card (NIC) 304, a power supply unit 302, a microprocessor component 306, a DAC component 308, and an amplifier 310. In the case of a standalone brick 300, power is required for each component in the brick. This power is supplied by the power supply unit 302. As mentioned above, NIC 304 provides an interface to an IP network. Microprocessor component 306 includes a clocking component and an IP stack interface. Microprocessor component 306 performs the necessary synchronization and other processes for the functions generally described herein. If the brick is for a receive type A / V device, the DAC component 308 is ideally present, while if the brick is for a source A / V device, the ADC component will typically be found. Both converter components integrate the clocking mechanism to provide timing and synchronization of the signals. Amplifier component 310 provides the analog processing needed to drive the receive A / V system.

  Having briefly described the environment of the present invention, the following description focuses on some other aspects of the present invention, namely those directed to the operation of an A / V system utilizing the present invention. As a general premise, IP networks do not guarantee timely delivery of information. The best packet delivery is what it can be expected. In other words, the packet of data will get there when it gets there, if it gets there. Such uncertainties in IP networks are due to delay, latency, jitter and other inherent network characteristics. However, the present invention provides a solution by which the A / V stream can be transmitted and received in a synchronized manner despite such setbacks of common IP networks. . In particular, the present invention provides the concept of "time time" synchronization for A / V stream information transmission and rendering.

  Synchronization between A / V transmission and playback is achieved by establishing time synchronization between source and receiving devices. Time synchronization is achieved by choosing a time master on the network. Brick and corresponding IPA / V devices all synchronize their clocks to the time master. In operation, an A / V data packet originating from a source device includes a time stamp (t). The time stamp (t) is obtained from the time master device 228. The delay indication (d) is also included in the transmission data packet. In combination, these time-related components of the data packet instruct the receiving device when to render the information. In essence, each receiving device waits until a certain time period (t + d) to render the associated packet. In this way, all receiving devices simultaneously stage the received information packet to (t + d), regardless of when the information was actually received at the device from the source. For example, assume that there are two receiving devices, recvA and recvB. Further assume that the data packet reaches device recvA in x seconds and device recvB in y seconds. As long as x and y seconds are less than a particular packet delay indication d, recvA and recvB will play / render the packets synchronously at time (t + d), regardless of when they were received.

  The strict time concept provides synchronization of human perception of audio and video information over IP networks. Synchronization from audio to video is commonly referred to as lip sync. It is well known that the speed of sound is approximately 0.3 meters (one foot) per millisecond and the speed of light is approximately 0.3 meters (one foot) per nanosecond. In this way, visual information perceived by humans reaches the brain much faster than any accompanying sounds that are generated simultaneously. Through various experiments and studies within the art, the perception threshold for sound to visual delay ranges from negative 8 milliseconds (8 mSec) to positive 20 or 30 milliseconds (+20/30 mSec). It has been decided and generally accepted. In other words, the delay between the visually perceived event and its accompanying sound must be in the range described above in order for it to go unnoticed. More specifically, when dealing with an A / V stream, if the sound arrives 8 ms before the video or 20 ms after the video, the sound will be noticeably disjointed to human listeners. Will not be.

  Directing audio information to two or more loudspeakers requires tighter phasing of the signals to ensure that there is no noticeable distortion in the listener. The simplest distortion is an echo, but more subtle distortions result from signal cancellation. The exact timing for maintaining a high quality stereo image (or for the majority of channels) is not explicitly stated in the scientific literature, but a time accuracy of tens of microseconds is clearly identifiable It is. Some movie studios use an empirical rule that accuracy must be １ ／ wavelength of the highest frequency of interest. Thus, a 20 KHz signal requires a time accuracy of 12.5 microseconds. The present invention embodies a technique for addressing and minimizing such potential distortions when transmitting a signal over a network to a receiving device. The technique is based on the concept of synchronized signal recovery by all receiving devices.

  A general rule of thumb, as described above, is that synchronization to 12 microseconds (12 μsec) should provide listeners with a studio-like quality experience. If only audio-to-video synchronization is needed, that synchronization is less important. The source and receiving devices of the present invention all synchronize their clocks to provide a single reference point. Synchronization is achieved by referencing a single time master device 228. However, it should be noted that the accuracy of the clock synchronization of these devices depends on how each device is connected to the time master device, for example a wired or wireless connection. The propagation delay variance of the medium in which the receiving device is connected to the network affects the accuracy of the synchronization of the time received from the time master device 228. However, it is not important how long the collective receiving device is out of synchronization with the source device, as long as all receiving devices are synchronized. In other words, strict time synchronization between the receiving devices allows for synchronized playback and rendering, thus enhancing the listening enjoyment for the user. Such a function of the present invention is to provide strict time synchronization.

  The introduction of the "exact time" concept of the present invention to implement exact time for A / V stream synchronization will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 illustrates a conventional phase locked loop (PLL) for processing SPDIF (Sony Philips Digital Interchange Format) information. As shown, source DVD 402 provides a SPDIF signal, which is sampled by PLL 406 and received by DAC 404 before being played through speaker cone 408. This arrangement is commonly used to address inconsistencies between the internal clock of the source device, such as the DVD 402, and a common intermediate device, such as a DAC. For example, while the DVD 402 can operate at a frequency of 44.1 kHz and the DAC 404 can also operate at 44.1 kHz, there is the fact that due to the nature of the electronic components, the two frequencies are not exactly the same. The two frequencies may have truncated decimals. In other words, the DVD 402 may actually be at 44.0877 kHz, and the DAC 404 may be at 44.0944 kHz. Thus, over an extended period of time, and sometimes at DAC 404, a buffer underflow or overflow condition exists. In other words, depending on which of the two components is faster, DAC 404 can end up with an empty buffer and the signal does not reach the speaker. Alternatively, the DVD 402 may not have room in the DAC's buffer for new information. PLL 406 enables this mismatch to be corrected. With that modification, the phase between the device and such synchronization is the same. The PLL 406 adjusts the DAC 404 by following the incoming signal from the DVD 402 and speeding up or slowing down the flow of information from the DAC 404 buffer.

  In the present invention, the source and receiving devices connected on the network 200 as shown in FIG. 2 are separately synchronized. FIG. 5 illustrates an arrangement within the present invention for providing synchronization between the source DVD player 202 and the speaker 232 of FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, source DVD 202 provides a signal to source brick 210, which places the information on network communication cloud 220. The receiving brick 230 can receive information from the network communication cloud 220 and play it through the speaker cone 232. In this arrangement, synchronization is achieved through the connection of clock 510 to DAC 512, thereby providing feedback to brick 230 to control the rendering of A / V stream information.

  The A / V information stream originates on the DVD 202 and is appropriately converted to an IP protocol by the brick 210 and transmitted to one of several receiving devices connected to the network communication cloud 220. The transmission on the IP network is non-isosynchronous. In other words, the IP network transmits the data packet based on the changing time. Thus, packets intended for the destination cannot be reliably expected to arrive at fixed time intervals, or cannot be temporarily stayed for a certain length of time. Therefore, any synchronization of A / V stream information must be flexible and variable. Thus, a simplified solution that utilizes only a fixed time delay will not achieve the required continuous and sustainable high degree of synchronization required for A / V stream rendering. Thus, the clock 510 is coupled to the DAC 512, and in response to the IP network packet delivery, the rendering of the sound by the DAC 512 speeds up and slows down as the clock 510 speeds up or slows down. . However, unlike the situation illustrated in FIG. 4, where the PLL 406 can follow the incoming isochronous information, that option is not available when dealing with an IP network. In other words, it is not possible to tie a PLL to a non-identical synchronization stream of an IP network. PLLs can only operate in the same synchronization environment.

  Returning to FIG. 5, the present invention provides a time mechanism for an independent clock 510, together with the time synchronization information described above, embedded in the A / VIP stream, since there is no direct binding to the stream from the network communication cloud 220. Use Then, using this combined information, the rendering of the A / V stream is speeded up and slowed down. A more detailed description of the use of common time to convert non-identical synchronization networks to synchronization networks can be found in US patent application Ser. No. 09 / 836,834, which is hereby incorporated by reference. Part of the specification.

  When applied to multiple sources and receiving devices, synchronization of A / V data results in a simultaneous receiving output device. Users can optionally connect to A / V devices over a network and distribute A / V content between those devices while maintaining acceptable standards and quality of user listening enjoyment Can be. Using the inherent network switching capability, the A / V switch 110 of FIG. 1 can be completely eliminated. Mediate and synchronize A / V content streams for output at multiple receiving devices. The problems of causing distortion to listeners due to network distribution, and the peculiarities of IP networks, are overcome by the system and method of the present invention.

  As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, a personal computer or other computing device may be configured to perform the functions described above. In particular, the operating environment of a personal computer may be utilized to implement the time master 228 of FIG. 2, the brick 300 of FIG. 3, or of the individual or combination of devices illustrated in the exemplary network 200 of FIG. Function can be provided.

  These functions can also be performed on any one or more computing devices in various combinations and configurations, and such variations are contemplated within the scope of the invention.

  The present invention uses the IP protocol to transmit A / V information to a large number of devices over a network, enables connection of legacy A / V devices to the network, and without distorting A / V content. Provides a number of advantages and objectives for providing precise time rendering and synchronization at the output device.

  Although the invention has been described with respect to particular embodiments, those embodiments are intended in all respects to be illustrative rather than restrictive. Alternative embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the present invention, along with other advantages which are obvious and inherent with respect to the system and method of the present invention, are well-adapted to achieve all the objects set forth above. Will be. It will be appreciated that certain features and sub-combinations are useful and may be used without reference to other features and sub-combinations. This is considered within the scope of the claims.

1 is a block diagram illustrating the general connection of audio / visual components at home. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an audio / visual connection in an IP network combining the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an audio / visual brick that allows backward compatibility of legacy audiovisual components with the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating components and flows in a conventional audiovisual connection from a DVD source player to a speaker output for correlating an output signal to a source signal. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating components and flows for synchronizing an output signal with a source signal in an audio / visual arrangement of a DVD player and a speaker, utilizing the present invention.

Explanation of reference numerals

102 Cable box for satellite broadcasting receiver 104 PC with MP3
106 VCR
108 CD / DVD player 110 Tuner AM / FM source switcher 112 Television 114 Sound processor 116 Amplifier 118,232 Left channel speaker 120,236 Right channel speaker 202,402 DVD player 204 Tuner / AMP
206 CD player 208 Personal computer 210 First type brick 212 Second type brick 214 Third type brick 216, NIC
218 802.11 Access Point 220 IP Communication Cloud 222 10/100 Switch 224 DSL Modem 226 WAN / Internet 228 Time Master System 230, 234 4th Brick 238 5th Brick 240 Display 302 Power Supply 306 Processor-IP-Stack 308 DAC
310 amplifier 404 decoder / DAC
406 PLL
408 Speaker cone 510 Clock 512 DAC

Claims (17)

A method for disassembling an audio-visual system, comprising:
Providing an audio-visual stream from the source device as one or more data packets for communication over the network;
Transmitting the one or more data packets over the network;
Receiving the data packet and obtaining the audio-visual stream from the received data packet, and rendering the audio-visual stream in a synchronized manner on a number of output devices. Method.   The method of claim 1, wherein the source device and the output device are located at geographically dispersed locations.   The method of claim 1, wherein the source device and the receiving device are located in close proximity and connected over a local area network.   The method of claim 1, wherein the data packet incorporates a time stamp and one or more items of rendering or playback information.   The method of claim 1, wherein the network is an IP network.   The method of claim 4, further comprising controlling rendering of the audio-visual stream to synchronize output of the audio-visual stream on the output device.   Controlling the rendering of the audio-visual stream is performed through temporal manipulation by using the one or more items of rendering or playback information so that the output device should begin rendering or playing the audio-visual stream. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is indicative of an effect. A system for disassembling an audio-visual system, comprising:
First and second bricks;
An audio-visual source device;
One or more audio-visual output devices;
Generating an audio-video stream by the audio-visual source device; and coupling the audio-visual source device to a network via the first brick;
Connecting the one or more output devices to the network via the second brick, receiving and rendering the audio-video stream from the audio-video source device, the first and second output devices; Providing protocol conversion through a network interface component and an analog audio-visual component.   The system of claim 8, wherein the second brick provides timing synchronization for the audio-visual stream on the one or more output devices. A system for disassembling an audio-visual system, comprising:
Brick and
One or more audio-visual output devices;
Connecting the one or more output devices to a network via the brick, receiving and rendering an audio-video stream from an audio-video source device, wherein the brick provides a network interface component and an analog audio-visual A system for providing protocol conversion through components.   The system of claim 10, wherein the brick provides timing synchronization to the audio-visual stream on the one or more output devices.   The system of claim 10, wherein the brick is a separate component from the one or more output devices.   The system of claim 10, wherein the brick is incorporated into the one or more output devices. A method for synchronizing rendering of an audio-visual stream from a source device on one or more output devices in a computing environment, the method comprising:
Identify the time master on the distribution network,
Providing at least one time component corresponding to information obtained from the time master to a source device and the one or more output devices, and using the time component on the one or more output devices Establishing a common time to render the audio-visual stream synchronously. A computer system having a processor, a memory, and an operating environment, wherein the computer system performs, on one or more output devices, a method for synchronizing rendering of an audio-visual stream from a source device. Operable, the method comprising:
Identify the time master on the distribution network,
Providing at least one time component corresponding to information obtained from the time master to a source device and the one or more output devices, and using the time component on the one or more output devices Establishing a common time to render the audio-visual stream synchronously. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a method for disassembling an audio-visual system, the method comprising:
Providing an audio-visual stream from the source device as one or more data packets for communication over the network;
Transmitting the one or more data packets over the network;
Receiving the data packets and obtaining the audio-visual stream from the received data packets, and rendering the audio-visual stream on multiple output devices using a method of time synchronization between output devices. A computer readable medium comprising: A computer program having computer-executable instructions for performing a method for disassembling an audio-visual system, the method comprising:
Providing an audio-visual stream from the source device as one or more data packets for communication over the network;
Transmitting the one or more data packets over the network;
Receiving the data packets and obtaining the audio-visual stream from the received data packets, and rendering the audio-visual stream on multiple output devices using a method of time synchronization between output devices. A computer program characterized by comprising:

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